1. Field of Invention
This invention relates generally to an art craft technique making it possible for a child to reproduce on a blank copy sheet a multi-colored artwork printed on a master sheet, and more particularly to an art craft kit in which the artwork on the master sheet is dissected into stencil segments which are copied by the child, in sequence, on the blank copy sheet.
2. Status of Prior Art
A stencil is a cardboard or metal sheet that is die-cut or perforated to define lettering or a design. Ink or paint is forced through the stencil openings onto a surface to be printed.
An ancient technique practiced in Japan for creating works of art makes use of stencils having openings in various configurations which are placed in sequence on a blank canvas or paper copy sheet. Inks, paints or pastels are used to apply color to the copy sheet through the stencils. The positions at which the stencils are placed on the canvas and the sequence in which this is done are matters of aesthetic judgment.
In practice, hundreds and sometimes thousands of stencil forms are sequentially added to a blank canvas or other copy sheet to create an original artworks. Some of these rank as masterpieces. However, it takes many years for an artist to perfect this Japanese stencil technique, and the creation of an original artwork by this technique is a slow, time-consuming process.
The concern of the present invention is with the untrained child who lacks craft skills, yet enjoys painting colored pictures with crayons, paints or inks. The lack of craft skills rarely stands in the way of a child who has creative impulses. However, a picture painted by a child on canvas or paper is almost invariably primitive, for a child is only able to roughly approximate human and other complex forms.
In order to make it possible for an untrained child to paint a picture which exhibits a high order of professional skill, the common practice is to provide the child with a paint-by-the-numbers kit. What the child is given to paint is a printed black-and-white reproduction of a multi-colored original picture executed by a professional artist. The black and white printed picture is divided into outlined segments, each specifically identified by a number. The child is provided with a guide in which each number is listed against a particular color. If, therefore, number 27 is red, then the segment numbered 27 is to be painted red by the child.
In painting by the numbers, a child acquires no craft skills, for all he is doing is painting over an existing artwork to which he makes no contribution. It does not take long before the typical child becomes bored with this technique.
Ideally, an art craft kit for children should serve two equally important functions. First, it must have play or entertainment value which will sustain the interest of the child. Second, it must also have educational or teaching value so that in playing with the kit the child acquires useful craft skills. Art craft kits which make use of a painting-by-the-numbers technique fall far short of this ideal.
The classical way to teach the craft of painting to an apprentice is by imitation. The student is provided with an original painting executed by a master, or a good copy of this painting, and the apprentice is called upon to reproduce this painting, as best he can, on canvas or paper.
In his first try, the apprentice will experience great difficulty in making a recognizable reproduction of the original painting. But as he continues to make reproductions, the apprentice gains an appreciation of draftsmanship, perspective, gradations of color, and all other craft aspects of the original, and in time he becomes more skillful in the craft of painting
The classical technique continues to be practiced. Thus in many art museums, one sees students each standing at an easel placed in front of a painting masterpiece, the student seeking to reproduce this masterpiece. However, this technique is altogether unsuitable for a child who has had no formal training in drawing and is inexperienced in the use of paints.
Should one show a child a painting executed by a professional painter and ask him to reproduce it, his copy will bear little resemblance to this painting, and with repeated attempts, there would be little improvement. The reason for this is that an untrained child is unable to cope with the totality of the painting and doesn't know where to begin. In the classical technique of reproducing a painting, it is first necessary to create on the copy sheet a cartoon or general outline of the painting to establish its overall pattern. To do this is far beyond the ability of a typical child.
This is why it has heretofore been the practice to provide a child with a paint-by-the-numbers art craft kit, for with this approach the original art work is dissected into small segments which the child can cope with. But as explained above, the child acquires little skill in coloring in by the numbers an existing artwork.